Bells Are Ringing (musical)
This is about the '''stage musical.' For the film adaptation, see Bells Are Ringing (1960 film).'' Bells Are Ringing is a stage musical based loosely around the life of Mary Printz. Cast *Judy Holliday - Ella Peterson *Sydney Chaplin - Jeff Moss *Eddie Lawrence - Sandor *Jean Stapleton - Sue *Peter Gennaro - Carl *Bernie West - Dr. Kitchell Plot Ella Peterson works for "Susanswerphone", a telephone answering service owned by a woman named Sue. She listens in on others' lives and adds some interest to her own humdrum existence by adopting different identities – and voices – for her clients. They include Blake Barton, an out-of-work Method actor, Dr. Kitchell, a dentist with musical yearnings but lacking talent, and playwright Jeff Moss, who is suffering from writer's block and desperately needs a muse. Ella considers the relationships with these clients "perfect" because she can't see them and they can't see her. Jeff is writing a play called "The Midas Touch," the first play he's written since his writing partner left him. One day the producer of the play insists that he finish the play by the next morning and meet him at 9:00 am. While asking her to wake him up on time, he turns to Ella (who he only knows as the Susanswerphone lady) for help in writing the play. Meanwhile, Sandor, Sue's rich boyfriend, reveals plans to a group of gangsters to use Susanswerphone as a bookmaking operation, by pretending to be a record seller and taking orders for "symphonies" as code. Ella wants to go visit Jeff's apartment to help him write the play, but she is intercepted by a policeman who is convinced that Susanswerphone is a front for an "escort service." Ella asks him is it a crime to help someone in need? He agrees that it isn't, and lets her go. She arrives at Jeff's apartment and offers him help with his play, and a romance ensues. Ella is preparing to go to a party at Jeff's apartment, feeling nervous about meeting his friends. Carl, a friend of hers, helps her regain her confidence with a cha-cha dance. The guests at the party are all very pretentious and rich and snobby and they make Ella feel very out of place. She leaves Jeff. Carl, a music nerd, thwarts Sandor's operation when he receives an order for "Beethoven's 10th symphony," because he knows that Beethoven only wrote 9 symphonies. The policeman arrests Sandor. Meanwhile, Jeff comes to Susanswerphone to confess his love for Ella. She quits Susanswerphone in order to make a life with herself and Jeff. Musical numbers ; Act I * "Bells Are Ringing" – Telephone Girls * "It's a Perfect Relationship" – Ella Peterson * "Independent" – Jeff Moss and Ensemble * "You've Got to Do It" – Jeff Moss * "It's a Simple Little System" – Sandor and Ensemble * "Is It a Crime?" – Ella Peterson * "Better Than a Dream" – Ella Peterson and Jeff Moss * "Hello, Hello There" – Ella Peterson, Jeff Moss and Ensemble * "I Met a Girl" – Jeff Moss and Ensemble * "Long Before I Knew You" – Jeff Moss and Ella Peterson ; Act II * "Mu-Cha-Cha" – Carl and Ella Peterson * "Just in Time" – Jeff Moss, Ella Peterson and Ensemble * "Drop That Name" – Ella Peterson and Ensemble * "The Party's Over" – Ella Peterson * "Salzburg" – Sue and Sandor * "The Midas Touch" – Dr. Kitchell, Boys and Girls * "Long Before I Knew You" (Reprise) – Ella Peterson * "I'm Going Back" – Ella Category:Stage musicals